Thursday 19 July 2012

30-Day Paleo Challenge June RESULTS!



At Reebok CrossFit Connect we are in the business of changing peoples lives. And this is never highlighted better than when we run our 30 day paleo challenge and gather in the results.

And, just like all the others we have run, this most recent one has been a resounding success. The changes that our group of intrepid paleo adventurers have gone through in just 30 days has been absolutely amazing. Yes, we provide the training and the food plans but it is their hard work and determination that gets them to their destination. The sceptical faces we saw at the opening talk by Barney (our resident paleo nutritionist) are replaced by something along the lines of "So you guys DO know what you're talking about!" when we weigh and measure you up. I know a lot of you simply cant believe that those results can come from just 30 days.

Lets have a little recap for those of you that don't know what's involved.


For 30 days we asked our members to train 2-4 times a week at the box and to follow a strict paleo food plan drawn up by Barney and Plan P. Eating paleo is not an easy concept to get your head around initially as it cuts out a lot of things that most people have considered a staple part of their diet for all of their lives; potatoes, rice, pasta, bread and dairy. Just what are you meant to have with your meat and vegetables at dinner time? Or lunch without sandwiches? Are you crazy?!


However, it takes perhaps a week to 10 days for you to realise that you can live without those items and not long after that to fully feel the benefits of not having them in your diet. You have more energy and your energy levels are more balanced across the whole day without having the highs and lows associated with big sugar spikes. This is not to mention the longer term health benefits that a wheat and sugar free diet brings. For a great resource and more info on the paleo diet see here.

Eating like this alongside a short duration, high intensity training programme such as CrossFit produces big changes in body composition, helping you to reduce your body fat percentage whilst building lean muscle. There is no magic pill. Just sound nutritional advice, great coaching and the personal effort needed to work hard.


Okay so lets get down to it. What exactly did our members achieve whilst following the plan?

We had 16 people complete the challenge. And here are the results:

Total weight lost:                   37.2kg
Total body fat % lost:            33.5% 
Total waist inches reduced:    31.75
Total hip inches reduced:       10.75 (on 7 female participants)

(I dont want to give out individual results and names on the blog but if you would like more exact details then they will be available down at the box.)

This truly was an amazing set of results. Also, when you take into account that not everyone wanted to lose weight doing the challenge (losing weight and losing body fat are two different things) it becomes even more impressive. The remarkable thing about paleo is that you will only lose the excess fat you are carrying. The stuff you don't want. If you are eating adequate amounts of protein and calories you wont start losing precious muscle. That's not how it works. 



Whilst carrying out the plan everyone still saw good increases in their strength and fitness levels too, a fact that is recorded in a personal diary of achievement that every member keeps and fills in after every session. We can see the exact progress they are making and importantly for them it acts as a great motivational tool.

Now that the 30 days are over its great to hear that many of our participants are going to stick with this way of life and eating. It does make you feel so fantastic that you really don't want to go back to your old habits. Yes, you can treat yourself now again with the things you like but being so strict for 30 days really does reinforce how bad the junk products make you feel.

We'd like to say a massive well done to everyone that completed the challenge.

A special mention we feel should also go to Darren, Alex B, Bear, Michelle and Caz who made the biggest changes out of all losing 19.8kg in weight, 18" round the waist and 13.6% body fat between them. Brilliant stuff!

If you would like to know more about the next Plan P challenge, CrossFit or simply want to see the place where our members are seeing so much success then give us a call, drop us a line or come down to the box and say 'Hi'. We are a friendly, community driven gym where top quality coaching and nutrition advice are combined to really make a difference to your life.

http://www.crossfitconnect.co.uk
http://www.planp.co.uk
http://www.cavemansnacks.co.uk

Wednesday 4 July 2012

Reebok CrossFit Connect

We are pleased to announce our affiliation with Reebok.

We are pleased to announce that CrossFit Connect has joined a growing number of boxes in the UK and around the world and affiliated with Reebok to become Reebok CrossFit Connect.

Reebok have done an amazing job over the last two years in promoting CrossFit, pushing its message out to a much wider audience and raising its profile right around the world. More and more people are realising the power that CrossFit has to change lives for the better and as coaches this is what we strive for day in day out in our own boxes.

Yes, there were some misgivings when Reebok first got together with Coach Glassman and CrossFit in 2010. Such a tightly knit, almost underground community that CrossFit was had suddenly become breached by a huge multi-national corporate company like Reebok. People loved CrossFit because of its low-key, spit-and-sawdust feel and now they were selling out for commercial success. Hundreds of blog posts and comments were made online chastising CrossFit for selling out and this argument is still bubbling away today.

However, we have followed carefully just how Reebok have got involved, been to meetings with the UK head office and listened to proposals of just exactly what it is that they mean to get out of the partnership. We have seen how much they have raised CrossFits profile with quality prime time TV adverts, burgeoning competitions around Europe and have loved being able to watch all of our favourite athletes at the Games on ESPN and live streaming on the net. I doubt any of this would have happened without Reebok and it means more and more people are switching on to see just how damn fun CrossFit can be. As our nation spirals into an obesity epidemic surely this has to be a good thing.



Reebok are in it primarily to sell sports apparel. They have created a line of CrossFit specific clothes and shoes which they hope will become their flagship sports range. Lifting shoes, WODing shoes, shorts, t-shirts etc have all been designed with maximum training intensity in mind and of the items I have tried so far I have to say they are pretty damn good. The only downside at the moment is the cost of the items but I'm hoping this will come down in the near future to a more realistic level. You don't need this stuff to workout in but it certainly feels nice to wear. CrossFitters have become the biggest stash gathering fitness enthusiasts on the planet, jumping on the newest pair of trainers, compression socks, wrist straps...anything that will give them the edge in a WOD! Reebok have realised this and hope to benefit from it. And who can blame them?

So when it comes down to it, what does our affiliation with them mean?

It means we will be regarded alongside Reebok as a professional, quality brand. We can use their name to promote CrossFit Connect to a wider audience. We will feature on their websites and we will be holding events at the box each year. We will get some different signs made up for above the box door. We were chosen partly because of the quality of coaching we offer at the box and members can be assured that they will receive the best advice and guidance possible. You might even see us in few more pieces of Reebok gear over the next few months! ;)

Other than that, nothing will change. We will not change how we run the box and they will have no say in what makes us us. One of the best things about a CrossFit box is its uniqueness. Every box is different. We will continue to run Connect exactly as it is now as its this that our members love. One of our initial reservations was that boxes might become homogenised and god-forbid turn into mini globo gyms. But aside from the branding, each box will continue to run in its own unique fashion and its this that finally saw us make the decision to join forces with them.

We are now also in esteemed company in the UK with the likes of Reebok CrossFit Velocity, Reebok CrossFit 3D and Reebok CrossFit Thames, some of the biggest and best UK boxes. This is a proud achievement for us to sit alongside these coaches and names seeing as we are a fairly young and smallish (at the moment!) box.

We would just like to thank all of our members and supporters who have gotten us to where we are now. Its been great seeing our dream become reality and to build a fantastic place for people to come and train and have fun. We are really looking forward to seeing how the UK CrossFit scene develops over the next few years and love being part of such a vibrant community.

Cheers

Your Coaches: Dave, Holly, Barney & George